Current Affairs February 2023

• Union Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Bhupender Yadav launched the ‘Save Wetlands Campaign’. The campaign is based on a "whole of society" approach to wetland conservation.
  • During the occasion, two publications were also released ‘India’s 75 AmritDharohar- India’s Ramsar Sites Factbook’ and ‘Managing Climate Risks in Wetlands – A Practitioner’s Guide’.

• "YuvaSangam Portal” launched by the Ministry of Education, under Ek Bharat-Shreshtha Bharat. Under the project, 1000 youth in the age group of 18 to 30 years (300 from the North East, 700 from other states) will be sent to youth exchange programs in the North East and other states of the country.
• The 6^th Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Supreme Audit Institutions (SAI) Leaders' Meeting has been hosted by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India in Lucknow on 6 February. The theme of the meeting was 'Integrating Emerging Technologies in Audit'.
• The Indian Railways has introduced a Bharat Gaurav Deluxe AC Tourist Train to showcase Gujarat under the Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat This “Garvi Gujarat” tour has been started from Safdarjung Station in Delhi.
• State Bank of India has issued a project to RailTel Corporation of India Ltd. (RailTel), a Central Public Sector Enterprise (CPSE) under the Ministry of Railways, to provide 4G LTE (Long-Term Evolution) connectivity to 15,000 offsite Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) distributed across India.
• The United Nations (UN) Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), was held on 31 January 2023, at the United Nations (UN) headquarters in New York, United States. Punjab-based Patiala Foundation, a Non-governmental organization (NGO) from India, shared initiatives such as reflective stickers for bicycles, a ‘helmet bank’ and a ‘children’s challan book’ for road safety and environmental conservation.
• For the 1^st time in 73 years, on 4 February 2023, the foundation day of the Supreme Court has been celebrated. The Chief Justice of Singapore, Justice Sundaresh Menon (Judge of Indian origin) has been invited as the Chief Guest for the event.
• Union Railway minister Ashwini Vaishnaw has said that the most-awaited hydrogen train will be manufactured by 2023. "First, it will run on heritage circuits like Kalka-Shimla and later it will be expanded to other places,". The Finance Minister has allocated Rs.2.41 lakh crore for Railways which will be a big change for the sector as it will fulfil the aspirations of every passenger.
• India will be invited as the focal country at the Madrid International Book Fair in 2025. Spain was the theme country at the 46th International Kolkata Book Fair being held in Kolkata, West Bengal.
• India has listed Pakistan-based terrorist Abdul Rehman Makki as an UN-listed terrorist. The development came after the United Nations Security Council listed the Lashkar-eTaiba's deputy chief Abdul RehmanMakki as a global terrorist under its ISIL (Daesh) and Al-Qaida Sanctions Committee. Abdul Rehman Makki was already listed by India and US as a terrorist under their domestic laws.
• ‘Mangrove Initiative for Shoreline Habitats & Tangible Incomes’- MISHTI Scheme was announced in the budget on 1 February 23. The main aim of the scheme is to take up mangrove plantations along the coastline and on saltpan lands. It also aims to preserve Mangrove forests. MISHTI is to be implemented by converging CAMPA Fund, MGNREGS, and other sources.
  • Compensatory Afforestation Fund Management and Planning Authority (CAMPA) Fund is a fund set up to receive compensation that has to be deposited along with the net value of the land under the CAMPA law. It is deposited by authorities who are diverting forest lands for non-forest purposes.  90% of the Fund is given to the states while 10% is retained by the Centre.
• Prime Minister Narendra Modi has participated in the Krishnaguru Eknaam Akhanda Kirtan for World Peace at Barpeta in Assam via video conferencing on 3rd February 2023.
• Paramguru Krishnaguru Ishwar established the Krishnaguru Sevashram in the year 1974, at village Nasatra, Barpeta Assam
• Krishnaguru Eknaam Akhanda Kirtan for World Peace is a month-long kirtan being held from 6th January at Krishnaguru Sevashram.

• The government has approved the conversion of debt-ridden Vodafone Idea's interest dues of over Rs 16,133 crore into equity. With this conversion, the government is expected to become the largest shareholder in the loss-making telecom company with a 33.14 per cent stake.
• With the objective of India being a global hub for 'Shri Anna (millets)', the Indian Institute of Millet Research, Hyderabad will be promoted as a Center of Excellence, so that the institute can share best practices, research and technologies at the international level.
• The first meeting of the G20 Employment Working Group was held from February 2 to 4in Jodhpur, where guest nations including Spain, the Netherlands and Singapore also took part.
• India has welcomed Congo into the International Solar Alliance. According to the Ministry of External Affairs, the International Solar Alliance Framework Agreement was signed by Raymond Serge Bell, Ambassador of the Republic of Congo in the presence of Joint Secretary Headquarters of ISA - Gurugram, India
• The biggest ever National Security Advisor (NSA) level meeting for, the ‘Initiative for Critical and Emerging Technology-ICET' took place for the first time between India and the US, held in
• The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) and Engineers India Limited (EIL) have signed an MoU for the construction of waste-to-energy and bio-methanation projects in million-plus cities for "Green Growth" of India. The ministry has decided to set up solid waste processing facilities on a large scale in million-plus cities.
• The helicopter manufacturing unit of Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) in Tumkuru, Karnataka has been dedicated to the nation by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. It is the largest helicopter manufacturing facility in Asia.
• The first edition of the five-day Gandhisagar Floating Festival on February 1 was inaugurated by the Madhya Pradesh government in Mandsaur, Madhya Pradesh. This festival is also going to be the first floating festival in
• The 'YayaTso Lake' situated at an altitude of 4,820 meters has been declared as the first Biodiversity Heritage Site of Ladakh under the Biodiversity Act. It is one of the highest breeding grounds of the black-necked crane in India
• Indian-American US Representative Pramila Jayapal has been named Ranking Member of the House Judiciary Committee’s Subcommittee on Immigration Integrity in January 2023. She was also the founding co-chair of the We Belong Together
• The Reserve Bank of India in February 2023, appointed V Ramachandra, former chief general manager of Canara Bank, as a member of the Advisory Committee of Srei Infrastructure Finance Limited (SIFL) and Srei Equipment Finance Limited (SEFL).

• Indian-American Dr Ami Bera has been appointed as a member of the US House committee handling intelligence-related He also serves on the House Foreign Affairs Committee and the House Science, Space, and Technology Committee.
• Union Minister for Culture and Tourism G Kishan Reddy launched the 4^th ASEAN-India Youth Summit in Hyderabad. The 4-day summit has been organized by the Ministry of External Affairs in association with the India Foundation. The summit aims to enhance the ASEAN-India youth connectivity by building on the values shared by the ASEAN countries since time immemorial.
• About 100 crore rupees have been allocated for the National Action Plan for Mechanized Sanitation Ecosystem (NAMASTE) in the Union Budget 2023-2024, as well as looking to ensure cleanliness by 100% mechanization of septic tanks and sewers in all cities and towns.
  • NAMASTE Scheme was launched as a Central Sector Scheme in the year 2022.

• Prime Minister Modi dedicated to the nation the 246 km long Delhi-Dausa-Lalsot section of the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway at Dausa in Rajasthan. This section has been constructed at a cost of over Rs 12,150 crore. The total length of this Delhi-Mumbai Expressway is 1386 km.
• The Competition Commission of India (CCI) has constituted a 16-member committee to look into the Draft Digital Competition Act. Chaired by Corporate Affairs Secretary Manoj Govil, the panel will review existing competition norms and will examine the need for new legislation to tame the digital gatekeepers.
• Union rural development and Panchayati raj minister Giriraj Singh launched the Mission Antyodaya Survey 2022-23, which will shed light on how government schemes have benefited rural India and what is the current economic situation of the country’s villages. The survey will be conducted among 2,69,253 gram panchayats across the country, all of which have their profiles on the EGram Swaraj portal.
• To boost the waterways network, the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways has planned several initiatives to develop ports in India at par with global standards. This project has been made under the Maritime India Vision (MIV) 2030. The ministry has planned an investment of Rs 1,00,000 to Rs 1,25,000 crore for capacity enhancement and development of world-class infrastructure at ports.
• The 14^th Aero India Festival has been organized from February 13 to 17 at Air Force Station Yelahanka, Bengaluru. Indigenous defense technology and systems have showcased at this event of the Defense Research and Development Organization (DRDO).
• The two-day establishment meeting of the G-20 EMPOWER Group of the Ministry of Women and Child Development has been organised in Agra. The theme of the meeting: “Empowering Women to Lead across Sectors: Role of Digital Skilling and Future Skills”.
• As part of “Operation Dost,” India has deployed a field hospital, supplies, and rescue personnel to the earthquake-stricken countries of Turkey and Syria.
• Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh told that the world today recognises India's Blue Economy resources and the International Seabed Authority (ISA) with headquarters in Jamaica has officially designated India as a "Pioneer Investor".
  • International Seabed Authority (ISA) and the Ministry of Earth Sciences exchanged PMN (Polymetallic Nodules) Exploration Extension Contract.
  • The contract was initially signed on 25 March 2002 for a period of 15 years which was later extended twice by the authority for a period of 5 years between 2017 and 2022.
• The government has extended the PMKUSUM scheme till March 2026. The decision was taken as the scheme's implementation was significantly affected due to COVID.
  • Pradhan Mantri Kisan Urja Suraksha evam Utthaan Mahabhiyan (PM-KUSUM) was launched in 2019 by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy. It aimed at adding solar capacity of 30,800 MW by 2022 with a total central financial support of Rs 34,422 crore.

• Meta (formally known as facebook) announced its partnership with the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) for the G20 Stay Safe Online Campaign and launched the #DigitalSuraksha
• The Directorate General of GST Intelligence (DGGI) and the National Forensic Sciences University (NFSU) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for setting up digital forensic laboratories along with the exchange of information and knowledge, technological advancement and skill development in the field of digital forensics.
• Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Digital Green under a public-private partnership framework to build a national-level digital extension platform.
• Energy Efficiency Services Limited (EESL), a Public Sector Undertaking under the Ministry of Power, signed an MoU with Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand Growth Triangle Joint Business Council (JBC). MoU was signed during the G20 Energy Transitions Working Group meeting held in MoU aims to further promote the adoption of energy efficiency and sustainable practices in the region.
• The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) partnered with the Indian Navy to push forward the Gaganyaan mission. ISRO along with the Indian Navy carried out the initial recovery trials of the crew module that will splash down in the ocean after re-entering Earth's atmosphere from space. The trials were conducted in the Water Survival Test Facility (WSTF) of the Indian Navy at Kochi.
• The Minister for Communications, Electronics & Information Technology and Railways, Shri Ashwini Vaishnaw inaugurated AMRITPEX 2023 - National Philatelic Exhibition. This five-day Mahakumbh of Stamps (11th to 15th February 2023) in Hall 05, Pragati Maidan, New Delhi, has been organized as a part of Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav Celebrations.
• The President Smt. Draupadi Murmu addressed the inaugural function of the 2nd Indian Rice Congress on February 11, 2023, at ICAR- National Rice Research Institute, Cuttack.
• Minister of State for Textiles, Darshana Jardosh inaugurated the 68th India International Garment Fair at India Export Mart of Greater Noida.
• Britain’s Royal Mail unveiled the first postage stamps to feature the image of King Charles III, following his ascension to the throne in September 2022.
• The Sculpture Park at Bikaner House in New Delhi was inaugurated by Rajasthan Chief Secretary Usha Sharma. Sculpture Park showcases a fusion of modern and contemporary art and culture in the traditional setting of Bikaner House.
• Union Ministry of Culture has organised Rashtriya Sanskriti Mahotsav-2023 at Azad Maidan in Mumbai, from 11th to 19th February 2023.
• 'Namami Gange Mission-II' project launched with a budgetary outlay of Rs 22,500 crore by the year 2026
  • The Namami Gange program was launched in June 2014 with a budgetary outlay of Rs 20,000 crore to rejuvenate the river Ganga and its tributaries for a period up to March 31, 2021.
• The Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Modi has approved the Centrally Sponsored Scheme- “Vibrant Village Program” (VVP) with a financial allocation of Rs.4800 crore for the financial year 2022-23 to 2025-26.
  • The scheme will help in the development of essential infrastructure and the creation of livelihood opportunities along the northern land border of the country in 19 districts and 46 border blocks, 4 states and 1 union territory, achieving inclusive growth and retaining population in border areas.
• The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has launched a nationwide 'Mass Drug Administration' (MDA) campaign intending to eliminate Filariasis. India aims to eliminate Filariasis by the year 2027.
  • Filariasis is a parasitic infection caused by microscopic, thread-like worms. It is spread by the bite of infected Culex mosquitoes and affects millions of people worldwide in tropical and subtropical regions.

• Two-day parliamentary workshop inaugurated at Gujarat assembly. The workshop was inaugurated by Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on 15 Feb.  It is being organized to make the people's representatives aware of various topics such as rights, duties, their role inØ parliamentary democracy, Dos and Don'ts in Assembly, parliamentary prerogatives etc.
• The public sector oil refineries in India are estimated to build a green hydrogen capacity of 137,000 (1.37 lakh) tonnes per annum (TPA) by 2030.
  • Dr S S V Ramakumar, Director of R&D, Indian Oil Corporation revealed the above information while speaking at the India Energy Week in Bengaluru.

• The Union Cabinet has approved the strengthening cooperative movement in India and deepening its reach up to the grassroots. In this regard, the Ministry of Cooperation (MoC) has formulated a plan to establish 2 lakh Primary Agriculture Credit Societies (PACS) in uncovered villages/panchayats, and viable fishery cooperatives in each coastal Panchayat/village as well as Panchayat/village having large water bodies over the next 5 years.
• Indian Railways has launched the 'Rail Post Gati Shakti Express Cargo Service' to ensure the timely delivery of commodities to the service sector. This service is a part of the collaboration budget announcement for 2022-23 between Indian Railways and India Post.
• The 7th 'Economic Times Global Business Summit 2023' has been organized on 17-18 February 2023 in New Delhi. The theme of this global business summit is “Flexibility, Influence, and Dominance”.
• mPassport Police App new app developed by the external affairs ministry and rolled out in New Delhi is expected to cut the time for police verification of passport applicants to five days and reduce the scope for misuse of the process. The new digital services were launched by Union Home Minister Amit Shah during the 76th Raising Day Parade of Delhi Police.
• An apex panel comprising seven secretaries has been constituted under the leadership of Cabinet Secretary Rajiv Gauba to oversee the implementation of the Karmayogi programme, the government's ambitious mission for training government employees.
  • A Cabinet Secretariat Coordination Unit (CSCU) was recently set up under the National Program for Civil Services Capacity Building (NPCSCB) or Mission Karmayogi.
  • Mission Karmayogi Yojana was launched on 2nd September 2020.  The main objective of the Mission Karmayogi scheme is to develop the capabilities of government employees.
• Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari on 20 February laid the Foundation Stone of the world's largest and unique Divyang Park - Anubhuti  Inclusive Park in Nagpur, Maharashtra. It is the world's first inclusive disabled park.
• The world's largest electrical show 'ELECRAMA 2023' by Indian Electrical and Allied Electronics Industry (IEEMA)  has held at India Expo Mart, Greater Noida, Uttar Pradesh. The program was presided over by the Chief Guest RK Singh, Union Minister of State (Independent Charge).  This year's theme is 'Reimagine Energy - for a sustainable future'.
  • Based on showcasing innovation and future technologies in many areas including Storage, Green Hydrogen, Fuel Cells, AI, and IoT. This edition will also focus on sustainability through Energy Conservation, Carbon Net Zero, and Smart Consumption.

• RK Singh, the minister of power and new and renewable energy, has launched the South Asia Distribution Utility Network (SADUN), which aims to modernize the distribution of utilities in South Asia via knowledge sharing among the region's DISCOMS.
• The Union Cabinet has approved the extension of the tenure of the 22nd Law Commission of India till August 31, 2024. The term of the present 22nd Law Commission was to end on 20 February 2023.
  • The 22nd Law Commission was constituted on February 21, 2020, for three years and its Chairman, Justice (Retd) Rituraj Awasthi assumed office on November 9, 2022. Its chairman and members have recently assumed office. So they did not get enough time to work.
  • The term of the 21st Law Commission ended on August 31, 2018. Its chairman was Justice Balbir Singh Chauhan.
  • The Law Commission of India is a non-statutory body constituted by the Government of India. This commission was constituted for the first time in independent India in the year 1955, headed by the then Attorney General of India, MC Setalvad.
• External Affairs Ministry’s (EAM) annual flagship event on Geo-economics, Asia Economic Dialogue has begun in Pune, Maharashtra on 23 Feb 2023.
• As,  Kohima Village (Nagaland), also known as Bara Basti, the 2nd largest village in Asia has adopted resolutions for a clean and fair election.  Every citizen from Kohima village has been sensitised about their voting rights.
  • The village council has come out with strict conditions that no political parties can campaign to enhance the clean election campaign.
• Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud announced that the Supreme Court has introduced "Neutral Citations" of judgments to ensure a uniform pattern of citing its judgments.
  • Earlier, the Supreme Court informed that steps have been taken for the introduction and implementation of a uniform, reliable and secure methodology for identifying and citing judgments in the apex court.
• At I2U2 Business Forum in Abu Dhabi, UAE, the Joint Secretary of the Indian Ministry of Foreign Affairs Dammu Ravi signed a letter expressing the Indian Government’s intention to join the Agriculture Innovation Mission for Climate (AIM4C).
  • The United States and the United Arab Emirates launched AIM4C in November 2021.  AIM4C seeks to increase investment in and support climate-smart agriculture and food systems innovation. To date, the AIM4C initiative has successfully increased these investments to more than 8 billion U.S. dollars globally.
• The meeting of the W20 (Women 20) under India's G20 presidency has been held at Aurangabad, Maharashtra on 27-28 February 2023. 'Pursuit of Gender Equality, Equity and Dignity for Women-led Development' is the theme of the meeting.
  • W20 (Women 20) is an official engagement group under the G20 which was established during the Turkish presidency in 2015.
• Prime Minister Narendra Modi today released the 13th instalment of over Rs. 16,000 crores, under the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-KISAN), through direct benefit transfer to more than 8 crore beneficiaries.
  • Under the scheme, eligible farmer families are provided Rs. 6,000 per year in three equal instalments of Rs. 2,000 each.
  • The Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-KISAN) scheme, launched by Modi in 2019, aims to provide income support to all landholder farmer families across the country with cultivable land, subject to specific exclusions.

• Prime Minister Modi inaugurated the Shivamogga Airport (Karnataka)with a lotus-shaped terminal. The event coincided with the 80th birthday of Karnataka BJP strongman and former Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa.
• Prime Minister Modi laid the foundation stone and inaugurated multiple development projects worth more than Rs 2,700 crore in Belagavi, Karnataka today. The Prime Minister dedicated the redeveloped Belagavi Railway Station building to the nation.
• The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) is going to start the country's first virtual shopping app soon for its passengers so that passengers can shop during their journey and can also provide the delivery facility of goods ordered at destination stations.
• The 2,880-megawatt (MW) Dibang Multipurpose Project (MPP) in Arunachal Pradesh (AP), the largest ever hydropower project, has got approval from the Government of India with the investment of around Rs 31,876.39 crores to meet the power demand. The project will be developed by National Hydroelectric Power Corporation (NHPC) Limited.
• National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) on 22 Feb'23 announced the use of phosphor-gypsum waste material in the construction of national highways.
• Agricultural and Process Food Export Development Authority (APEDA) is participating in the 28th edition of GULFOOD 2023 being held in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in February 2023.
• Union Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Minister Narendra Singh Tomar, inaugurated the four-day National Horticulture Fair in Bengaluru, Karnataka.
• The first foreign university to establish a campus in India will be the Deakin University of Australia. The autonomous campus will be built in Gujarat International Financial Tec-City (GIFT) City

Bilateral

• India has supplied 50 buses to Sri Lanka on the occasion of the Sri Lanka’s 75th anniversary of independence. Commercial vehicle manufacturer Ashok Leyland has bagged a contract for the supply of 500 buses from the Sri Lanka Transport Board.
• India and the European Union have formed three working groups under the Trade and Technology Council (TTC). The new TTC will deepen strategic engagement in trade and technology between both partners. The TTC was announced by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Prime Minister Narendra Modi jointly in New Delhi on 25 April 2022.
  • The Gross Enrollment Ratio (GER) for the age group 18-23 years has increased from 25.6% in 2019-20 to 27.3% in 2020-21.
  • Gender Parity Index (GPI), the ratio of female GER to male GER, has increased from 1 in 2017-18 to 1.05 in 2020-21.
  • The female enrollment in North East states in 2020-21 is 6.14 lakh, which is higher than the male enrollment of 5.92 lakhs, for every 100 male students, there are 104 female students in the North East region.

• Dr Mansukh Mandaviya chaired, the CEO Conclave at Plast India 2023 in New Delhi.
• India and Fiji signed a Memorandum of Understanding on visa exemption for diplomatic and official passport holders on 16 February in presence of External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and Fiji Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka. Under this agreement, holders of diplomatic and official passports will be able to enter, transit and stay in each other's territory without a visa for 90 days
• The Union Cabinet on 15 February approved the signing of the memorandum of understanding (MoU) between India and South Africa for cooperation in the 'disability sector'
  • It envisages that Persons with Disabilities (PwDs) the large and ageing population in both countries who especially require modern, scientific, durable, cost-effective aids and assistive devices will be benefitted from this MoU.

• The Cabinet approved the signing of an MoU between India and Chile for cooperation in the field of Agriculture and Allied sectors. This MoU will remain in force for 5 years which will be automatically renewed for a further period of 5 years.
• Qatar lifted its temporary ban on the import of frozen seafood from India, paving the way for enhanced export and improved bilateral relations with the West Asian country.
  • The ban was imposed in November last year, just ahead of the FIFA World Cup following the alleged detection of Vibrio cholera from a few consignments from India. The Qatar authorities had informed India that the ban was temporary owing to a lack of sufficient testing laboratories in their country in the run-up to the football event.

• External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar unveiled the bust of Sardar Vallabhai Patel at India House in Fiji's capital Suva. He was in Fiji from February 15 to 17, where he participated in the 12th World Hindi Conference.
• 12 cheetahs from South Africa were brought to Kuno National Park in Madhya Pradesh on 18 February. Of the 12 cheetahs, seven are male and five are female. Five months after the first batch of eight of these fastest land animals were brought there from Namibia, another African nation Under Project Cheetah’.
  • This is a one of its kind project in which a species is being brought out of the country (from South Africa / Namibia) and restored to the country

• As part of the military-to-military exchange program between the Indian Army and the Uzbekistan Army, the fourth edition of the training exercise Dastlik (2023). The exercise will be held at Pithoragarh, Uttarakhand till March 5, 2023.
• The Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Modi, has approved the signing of the MoU between the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) and The Institute of Chartered Accountants in England & Wales (ICAEW).
• The MoU is to provide recognition of the qualification, and training of each other’s members and admit the members in goodØ standing by prescribing a bridging mechanism on the prevailing terms and conditions.
• The Information Fusion Centre – Indian Ocean Region of India and the Regional Coordination Operations Centre, Seychelles signed an MoU on maritime cooperation.
• India and Guyana have agreed to cooperate in the oil and gas sector, including long-term crude purchases from the South American country and investment in its upstream sector.
• German Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s visit to India on February 25–26 will focus on advancing a $5.2 billion agreement between Germany and India to jointly construct 6 conventional submarines in India.

Memorandum of Understanding (MoU)

• Delhi-based Drone Destination Private Limited has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Patna (Bihar) to open Bihar’s 1st Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA)-authorized Drone Training Centre.
• The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) and Meta (formerly named Facebook) have announced the list of 120 startups and innovators for the Extended Reality Startup Programme in New Delhi.
• The Adani Group acquired the strategic Israeli port of Haifa for USD 1.2 billion and vowed to transform the skyline of this Mediterranean city as part of its decision to invest more in the Jewish nation, including opening an artificial intelligence lab in Tel Aviv. 
• Rolls-Royce, a British engineering company, announced that it has received an order from Air India for 68 Trent XWB-97 engines, in addition to an option for 20 more. The large A350 aircraft of Airbus are powered by Rolls-Royce XWB engines.
  • Rolls-Royce Trent XWB is a high bypass turbofan produced by Rolls-Royce plc
• Ministry of Youth Affairs &Sports(MoYAS), Government of India, Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) and National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education & Research, Hyderabad (NIPER Hyderabad) have signed a tripartite Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to create nutritional supplement testing capacity in India.
  • This MoU is a part of the efforts to address the doping problems in sports and to create awareness about the risks associated with the use of nutritional supplements.
• Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee (IIT Roorkee) and Central Water Commission (CWC) signed a Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) for establishing the International Centre of Excellence for Dams (ICED) at IIT Roorkee.
  • The ICED will focus on different safety and rehabilitation aspects of Dams, like Hydrological, Hydraulic, Structural, Geotechnical, seismic safety evaluation, and reservoir sedimentation & silt control, etc.

• Bharat Electronics Ltd (BEL) has signed an MoU with Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) for the domestic manufacture and supply of its Long-Range Artillery Weapon System- LORA weapon System for the Indian Tri-services. The state-of-the-art strategic weapon system weapon will be manufactured by BEL, as the prime contractor, based on the work share arrangement with IAI.
• Gopalan Aerospace, a leader in the Indian Aerospace Industry, has tied up with MTC Slovakia R.O and DEFSYSTECH S.R.O, the pioneers in the drone/defence development industry, for the development of precision drones in the country.
• Leading stock exchange NSE has entered into a data licensing agreement with derivatives marketplace CME Group for WTI crude oil and natural gas contracts. The pact will allow National Stock Exchange (NSE) to list, trade and settle rupee-denominated Nymex WTI crude oil and natural gas derivatives contracts for Indian market participants.
• A national-level hackathon KAVACH-2023 was launched on 16 February to identify innovative ideas and technological solutions to address India's 21st-century cyber security and cybercrime challenges.
  • KAVACH-2023 is a one-of-a-kind national hackathon jointly developed by AICTE, the Bureau of Police Research and Development (BPRD) and the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre.
• The Security Printing and Minting Corporation of India Limited (SPMCIL) and The Energy Resources Institute (TERI) has signed an MoU with an estimated cost of Rs 525.49 lakh for the integrated development of the village Model.
  • This MoU has been entered into under the CSR initiative of SPMCIL for the development of Model Village - Sirolia, District Dewas, Madhya Pradesh.
• • Tata Memorial Hospital (TMH), Mumbai and Waipapa Taumata Rau, University of Auckland have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on 22 February to engage in long-term cooperation in cancer care
  • Ministry of Rural Development has signed an MoU with Meesho an e-commerce platform owned by Bengaluru-based Fashnear Technologies Private Limited. As per the agreement, the e-commerce platform will help in the marketing of products made by the Self-Help Groups under the Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana – National Rural Livelihood Mission.
  • Bharat Electronics Ltd (BEL) said it signed an MoU with Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA), DRDO, for the Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA) programme.
  • EDGE, UAE’s leading defence group signed a Memorandum of Understanding with India’s aerospace firm Hindustan Aeronautics (HAL) at the International Defence Exhibition and Conference (IDEX). The MoU pertains to the joint design and development of missile systems and unmanned aerial vehicles (drones).
  CSC Academy, a subsidiary of Common Service Centre e-Governance Services India Limited, and NIELIT (National Institute of Electronics and Information Technology) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to enhance digital literacy and skill development in India.

• Infosys, next-generation digital services and consulting, announced that it will expand its collaboration with Microsoft, to help accelerate enterprise cloud transformation journeys worldwide, via an exchange filing.
• The Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA), under the Ministry of Commerce (MoC), signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Lulu Hypermarket LLC to promote the export of millets to the countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). APEDA in association with Lulu Group aims to promote millet products and value-added products around the world.
• Department of Science and Technology (India) and Germany-based Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems (Fraunhofer ISE) have signed a Letter of Intent for a long-term collaboration focusing on hydrogen technologies.

Defence

• ‘Operation Sadbhavna' is being carried out by the Indian Army in Ladakh, under this the Indian Army undertakes several welfare activities like running  Army Sadbhavna Schools for children living in remote areas of Ladakh, infrastructure development projects and ShikshaYatra etc.
  • Apart from this, an initiative 'Kargil Ignited Minds' has been launched exclusively for the girl students of Kargil to prepare them for various competitive examinations for admission to Sainik Colleges and various businesses Institutes in India.
• A joint training exercise “Exercise Trishakri Prahar” was conducted in North Bengal from 21 January to 31 January 2023. The exercise aimed to practice battle preparedness of the Security Forces using the latest weapons and equipment in a networked, integrated environment, involving all arms and services of the Army, the Indian Air Force and CAPFs.
• The 'Exercise Tarkash' by the National Security Guard (NSG) and the United Nations Special Operations Force (SOF) is being conducted in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. This is the 6^th edition of the exercise which began on 16 January and concluded on 14 February.
  • For the first time, Indo-US response to Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear (CBRN) attacks has been included in this exercise.

• Russian state news agencies reported that India received arms worth around $13 billion from Russia in the past five years. Moreover, New Delhi has further placed orders with Moscow for weapons and military equipment exceeding $10 billion.
• Light Combat Aircraft and MIG29 K Fighter Aircraft on 6 February successfully performed a maiden landing and take-off from India's first Indigenous Aircraft Carrier INS Vikrant.
  • India's first Made in India aircraft carrier INS Vikrant was commissioned into the Navy by Prime Minister Modi on 2 September 2022 at the Kochi Shipyard.

• The Ministry of Defence inked a contract with Larsen & Toubro (L&T) for the purchase of 41 indigenous modular bridges for the Corps of Engineers of the Indian Army, valued at over Rs 2,585 crore, providing a significant boost to the “Aatmanirbar Bharat”
• In keeping with the vision of national leadership towards enhancing awareness of ‘Nari Shakti’ Indian Navy in association with the Navy Wellness and Welfare Association (NWWA) is collaborating with M/s Jeep India for the conduct of an All Women Motor Expedition as a tribute to brave women of the country.
  • The all-women car rally with the slogan ‘She’s Unstoppable’ and tagline ‘Soar High’ started from the National War Memorial in New Delhi and travel to the Longewala War Memorial, Rajasthan and back over 12 days, spanning February 14-25, 2023.

• The Indian Army signed an MoU with Advanced Data Processing Research Institute (ADRIN) at ISRO (Indian Space Research Organisation) to co-develop Niche Technology (NT) and end products duly aligned to the dynamic requirements of the Indian army.
• The 4th edition of the joint military exercise, “Dharma Guardian” has been conducted between India and Japan from 17 February to 02 March 2023 at Camp Imazu, Shiga Prefecture, Japan.
• The Indian Air Force has developed an innovative solution ‘Vayulink’ that would aid pilots in dealing with bad weather and also provide jammer-proof uninterrupted communication with the base station.
  • The data link communication uses the Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS) that is also known as NAVIC, to send radio communication to the base station when the signals are low.

• Indian Air Force departs to participate in Exercise Cobra Warrior at Waddington Air Force Base (England). Exercise Cobra Warrior is a multilateral air military exercise in which air forces from Finland, Sweden, South Africa, the USA and Singapore are also participating along with the Royal Air Force and Indian Air Force.
• An Indian Air Force contingent comprising 110 Air Warriors has arrived at Al Dhafra airbase of the United Arab Emirates for participating in Exercise Desert Flag VIII. The IAF would be participating with five LCA Tejas and two C-17 Globemaster III aircraft. This is the first occasion when the LCA Tejas shall participate in an international flying exercise outside India.
• In line with the expanding military cooperation with South East Asian nations, an Indian Navy Kilo-class conventional submarine, INS Sindhukesari, docked in Jakarta, Indonesia, for the first time.

Rank

• As per the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), India’s position has improved in the Aviation Safety Oversight Ranking of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) as India’s aviation security monitoring ranking has improved to 55^th position from 112^th place. The USOAP is based on eight critical elements (CE) of a safety oversight system, which are measured by a set of protocol questions.
• India’s National Accreditation System under the Quality Council of India (QCI) has been ranked 5^th in the world in the recent Global Quality Infrastructure Index (GQII) 2021.
  • The GQII ranks the 184 economies in the world, based on quality infrastructure (QI).
  • India’s overall QI system ranking continues to be in the Top 10 at the 10^th position, with the standardization system (under BIS) at 9^th and the metrology system (under NPL-CSIR) at the 21^st position in the world.
• Finland is the happiest nation to live in 2023, according to the World Happiness Index 2023, with an average life rating of 7.842. With an average life evaluation of 3.819, India now holds 136th place among the nations in the World Happiness Index 2023, which will be released in 2023.
• India is the world's largest milk producer, contributing 24 per cent to global milk production in the year 2021-22, according to production data from the Food and Agriculture Organization Corporate Statistics Database (FAOSTAT). India's milk production has registered a growth of 51 per cent during the last eight years - 2014-15 and 2021-22 and has increased to 220 million tonnes in the year 2021-22.
  • The top 5 milk-producing states are Uttar Pradesh (14.9%), Rajasthan (14.6%), Madhya Pradesh (8.6%), Gujarat (7.6%) and Andhra Pradesh (7.0%).
• Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) has been included in the 25th edition of FORTUNE magazine’s list of the “World’s Most Admired Companies” for 2023. The list, which is regarded as a benchmark of corporate reputation, is based on a survey of global business executives, directors, and analysts.
• According to the latest report by Geo-location technology specialist TomTom, Bengaluru's traffic is set to make it the second slowest place to drive in the world in the year 2022.
  • The slowest city to drive in the world is London, where people take 36 minutes and 20 seconds to travel 10 kilometers.
• Mumbai has overtaken Delhi to become the world’s second-most polluted city in terms of the global Air Quality Index (AQI). According to Switzerland-based air quality monitoring tech company IqAir’s website.
  • Sarajevo in Bosnia has been ranked as the world's most polluted city.
• India ranked 47th position in Services Trade Restrictiveness Index (STRI) 2022 conducted by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).
  • Japan was ranked 1^st followed by UK, Netherlands, Czech, and Chile
  • India has been ranked 42 out of 55 countries in the latest International IP (Intellectual Property) Index report by the US Chamber of Commerce.  The United States ranks first in the 2023 index, followed by the UK and France.
  • According to HedgewithCrypto research, India became 7th biggest nation ready to adopt crypto in 2023. While Australia is the biggest country when it comes to the adoption of cryptocurrency in 2023.
  • According to a report from Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA) and Ember, Karnataka and Gujarat have emerged as India’s frontrunners in the transition to clean electricity and also making the most progress in overall preparedness and commitment in the transition to clean electricity.

• PVR Cinemas launched its 5-screen property at PVR Aerohub in Chennai International Airport, Chennai, Tamil Nadu (TN). This is India’s 1st multiplex housed within an airport complex.
• The Gujarat government signed an agreement with the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) to conduct the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) test for students of government schools. Gujarat is the first state in the country to sign such an agreement.
  • Program for International Student Assessment (PISA)- It is an international assessment that measures the maths and science literacy of 15-year-old students every 3 years.  It was first organized in 2000.

• Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh Shri Yogi Adityanath launched a new Global Gateway to the state with the inauguration of the first VFS Global Joint Visa Application Center (JVAC) and VFS Global Academy in Lucknow. VFS Global is the world's largest outsourcing and technology services specialist for governments and diplomatic missions
• Prime Minister, Modi laid the foundation stone of South India's first industrial corridor project in Tumakuru, Karnataka, which is spread over 8500 acres of land under the Chennai-Bengaluru Industrial Corridor.
• Goa government has launched a Heli-Tourism Service, the 1st premium Helicopter service, under the public-private partnership (PPP) model.
  • Heli-Tourism Service: The Heli-Tourism Service offers 10-minute joy rides to tourists for Rs.8,000 per person, charter flights, airport transfer rides.

• The Uttar Pradesh government has announced to provide up to 50 % subsidy on setting up solar-powered food processing units up to 75 KVA.
• The Telangana Govt. launched Telangana Mobility Valley, India's first new mobility-focused cluster to accelerate the growth of sustainable mobility in the country. The Government has also set up the Kalam Centre For Automotive Excellence to upskill youth in e-Mobility.
• Nagaland government has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Patanjali Foods Limited for development and area expansion under palm oil cultivation and processing for Zone-II
• Prem Singh Tamang, Chief Minister (CM) of Sikkim, launched the initiative, named ‘Mero Rukh Mero Santati’ (Plant a Tree, Leave a Legacy), under which 100 trees will be planted for every child born in Sikkim. The initiative is aimed at strengthening the connection between parents, children, and nature by planting trees to commemorate childbirth.
• Union Home Minister Amit Shah laid the foundation stone of the IFFCO Nano Urea Liquid Fertilizer Plant in Deoghar district, Jharkhand with a cost of Rs 450 crore. This is the fifth fertilizer unit of IFFCO. The plant will produce six crore Nano Urea bottles annually.
• The 36th Inter-University North Zone Youth Festival 'Antarnaad’ was inaugurated by Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha of Jammu. The 5-day long Youth festival has been organized by the University of Jammu under the aegis of the Association of Indian Universities, New Delhi.
• The Assam Police have arrested over 1,800 people so far in a massive crackdown on child marriage. Those having married girls below 14 years of age will be booked under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, and cases under the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006 will be registered against those who have married girls in the 14-18 years age group
• Deoghar Mart (Jharkhand) is an e-commerce website selling local arts and crafts. It was launched by Mr Manjunath Bhanjantri. He is basically from a bamboo artisan community. His village has more than 34 different artisan families. Manjunath has taken his community skills to the reach of the people through DEOGHAR MART.
• Maharashtra topped the list in sales of electric vehicles across all segments which have availed of the FAME-II subsidy, followed by Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat and Rajasthan
  • Under the FAME II scheme, the government earmarked Rs 10,000 crore as a subsidy for electric vehicles. The scheme has been extended till March-end 2024

• To promote ethanol production in an eco-friendly manner, the Uttar Pradesh government has partnered with Denmark to aid the state in adopting new technology for ethanol production.
• Ahmedabad has hosted a programme dedicated to Gujarat police titled ‘Rakshak: EkShaam Gujarat Police KeNaam’ on February 25, 2023.
• In Telangana, the first KG to PG campus has been inaugurated under the ManaOoru-ManaBadi initiative at Gambhiraopet Mandal of Rajanna Sircilla district. ManaOoru-ManaBadi means, Our Village-Our School initiative will be implemented in three years with a budget outlay of over 7200 crore rupees to benefit 19.84 lakh children of over 26 lakh schools
• The National Cadet Corps (NCC) contingent from Maharashtra won the Prime Minister's Banner at the Republic Day Camp 2023.
• WhatsAppChatbot ‘BalMitra’- developed by the Delhi Commission for Protection of Child Rights (DCPCR) and launched by the Delhi Govt. To enable two-way communication between people and the Commission (child rights panel) and eliminate the information gap. “BalMitra” can be accessed by sending a WhatsApp message to DCPCR Helpline No. 9311551393.
• Goa Government has launched the Vision for All School Eye Health programme in partnership with One Sight Essilor Luxottica Foundation and Prasad Netralaya. The programme is an extension of the current Vision for All Goa eye health programme.
• Kala Ghoda Arts Festival 2023 has been organised in Mumbai (Maharashtra) from 4 -12 February.
• 1^st meeting of the Sustainable Finance Working Group under G20 was held in Guwahati.
• The first Tourism Working Group (TWG) meeting was held at Dhordo in Rann of Kutch in Gujarat from the 7th to the 9th of February 2023.
• Kerala won the inaugural National Beach Soccer Championships held at Dumas Beach, Surat, on 1 February 2023.
• The famous Surajkund Mela has been held in Faridabad.
• Delhi State Council of Educational Research and Training (SCERT) has organized a 5-day ‘Jeevan-Vidya-Shivir’ for the teachers of Delhi government schools at Thyagaraja stadium.
• To provide accommodation facilities to the students and residents of Himachal Pradesh visiting the national capital, Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu on Wednesday laid the foundation stone of a five-storey 'Himachal Niketan' in Dwarka, New Delhi.
  • Apart from existing Himachal Bhawan, Himachal Sadan, presently facilitating stay facilities to the residents of Himachal Pradesh visiting New Delhi for various purposes including availing of medical services at AIIMS, Himachal Niketan will be the third alternative to stay in the national capital.
• Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin has launched the 2^nd phase of the Moovalur Ramamirtham Ammaiyar Higher Education Assurance scheme titled 'Pudhumai Penn'. It would benefit 1.04 lakh girl students.
  • The scheme is aimed at providing financial assistance worth Rs 1,000 per month to girl students who had studied classes VI to XII at government schools.

• PM Modi inaugurated the Aljamea-tus-Saifiyah, Arabic Academy of the Dawoodi Bohra Community in Mumbai.
• The Rajasthan govt has proposed to construct a zoo inside Keoladeo National Park, Bharatpur to display a range of wetland species, including rhinos, water buffaloes, dolphins etc. The zoo will be set up under the Wetland ex-situ Conservation Establishment (WESCE) plan.
• In the budget 2023-24 presented by the Chief Minister of Rajasthan, it was announced to increase the insurance cover amount from 10 lahks to 25 lahks under 'Chiranjeevi Bima Yojana'.
• Prime Minister Modi inaugurated the Global Investors Summit 2023 on 10 February 2023 in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh. He also inaugurated the Global Trade Show and launched the Invest UP 2.0 portal during the event.
• The Glass Igloo restaurant has opened amidst snow-capped mountains in Kashmir's hill station Gulmarg, which has become a tourist attraction. Tourists are seen enjoying their food and taking pictures in the glass-walled restaurant.
• Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai inaugurated Namma Clinic in the Mahalakshmipura ward of Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP), while the remaining 107 clinics were launched virtually.
  • Namma Clinic aims to provide universal and comprehensive primary health facilities under one roof in urban areas.

• The Geological Survey of India has found lithium reserves in Jammu and Kashmir. They have been found in the Reasi district.
• The "Family ID - One Family One Identity" online portal has been launched by the Uttar Pradesh government. Its objective is to provide free or subsidised ration to those families who do not have ration cards and are not eligible for the National Food Security Scheme.
• A two-day Urban-20 City Sherpas’ meeting held on 9 February in Ahmedabad aims to focus on promoting solidarity among cities to find common solutions that are in sync with the overall objectives of the G20.
• The country's strictest anti-copying law has come into force in Uttarakhand. Governor Lt Gen Gurmeet Singh has approved the Uttarakhand Competitive Examination (Prevention and Measures for Prevention of Unfair Means in Recruitment) Ordinance 2023.
  • Under this anti-copying law, there is a provision to impose a fine of Rs 10 crore on the copying mafia along with life imprisonment or 10 years in jail. Apart from this, there is also a provision to confiscate the property of the copying mafia.

• In the state of Meghalaya, 'Mission-300' and 'My Vote, My Valentine campaign' has been started by the Election Commission to increase voting by 90 per cent.
• PM Narendra Modi inaugurated the new Aljamea-tus-Saifiyah Arabic Academy (widely known as Jamea) campus in Mumbai, Maharashtra. This will be the fourth campus of Aljamea-tus-Saifiyah Arabic Academy.
• Welspun One Logistics Parks (WOLP) has signed an Rs. 2,000 crore pact with the Uttar Pradesh government to create warehousing and logistics parks in the state and expand its position in the warehousing sector in North India. The MoU was signed at the UP Global Investors Summit 2023 which was held on 10-12 February 2023 in Lucknow.
• The Sports Department of Uttar Pradesh signed several Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) at the sports-focused session titled “Harnessing Opportunities in the Sports Sector in Uttar Pradesh ” during the UPGIS 2023 event in Lucknow.
• Maharashtra cabinet has decided to implement Pradhan Mantri School for Rising India (PM Shri) in the state. 856 schools will be upgraded in the first phase. 1 crore 88 lakh rupees will be provided to each school for 5 years.  For this, the share of Centre and State will be 60:40 for 5 years.
  • Pradhan Mantri Schools for Rising India (PM-SHRl) Scheme is a centrally sponsored scheme by the Government of India
  • It will cover 14,500 existing schools, which will be redeveloped to reflect the key features of the National Education Policy, 2020.  The institutions developed under this will become 'model schools' under NEP.

• The Union government has identified four pilgrim centers for development under the Pilgrimage Rejuvenation and Spiritual Heritage Augmentation Drive (PRASHAD) Scheme in
• Prime Minister Modi virtually inaugurated the Jal Jan Abhiyan in the Sirohi district of Rajasthan on 16 February.
  • Under the nationwide campaign, people associated with the Brahmakumaris Sansthan and the Ministry of Jal Shakti will run a public awareness campaign for eight months to preserve more than five thousand water bodies across the country and to build new water bodies.  A target has been set to reach 10 crore people by organizing ten thousand programmes through the campaign.
• The Union Cabinet has approved the construction of the 4.1-km Shinkun La tunnel on the Nimu-Padam-Darcha road link to provide all-weather connectivity to the border areas of Ladakh.
  • The tunnel will be completed by December 2025 at Rs 1,681 crore

• The Boeing Company, an aerospace company based in the United States of America(USA), launched its first Global Support Center (GSC) in India at Gurugram, Haryana, which will offer customized operational efficiency and safety improvement projects for Boeing’s airline customers, regulatory bodies, and other stakeholders.
• Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC), has partnered with The Green Billions Limited(TGBL), to set up India’s first solid waste-to-hydrogen plant in Pune, Maharashtra.
• Stalin, Chief Minister (CM) of Tamil Nadu (TN), has unveiled the new e-vehicle policy “Tamil Nadu Electric Cars Policy 2023” to establish Tamil Nadu as the ideal destination for manufacturing electric vehicles (EV) in Southeast Asia. The policy is valid for 5 years from the date of announcement or until a new one is announced.
• Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel launched the sixth phase of Sujalam-Sufalam Jal Abhiyan in Gandhinagar. The objective of this campaign is to raise the groundwater level and make maximum use of rainwater.
• Delhi has allocated 23.5% of its total expenditure for education in 2022-23. This is higher than the average allocation (15.2%) for education by all states (as per 2021-22 budget estimates).
  • Assam has allocated 20.1% of its total expenditure for education in 2022-23. Himachal Pradesh has allocated 18.9% of its total expenditure for education in 2022-23.
• India's first frozen-lake marathon 'Last Run' at Pangong Tso in Ladakh has been organized on 20 February 2023 and the responsibility has been given to the Army and the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP).
  • There will be a 21 km marathon in Ladakh, its starting point will be Lukung and the endpoint will be Maan village. 75 selected athletes from India and abroad are participating in the race.  This marathon will also be applying for the 'Guinness World Record' for the marathon held on the world's highest frozen lake

• The Kollam district (Kerala) panchayat has been awarded the Swaraj Trophy as the State’s top district panchayat for the financial year 2021–2022. The Kannur district panchayat stood second in the rankings.
• On the sidelines of the G20 summit, Manipur state hosted the B20 conference. The theme of the conference was Sustainable Growth and Development. It was in line with the theme of the G20 summit, whichØ is One Earth One Family One Future.
• North India's first nuclear power plant will come up in Haryana in the village of Gorakhpur in Fatehabad district, 150 km north of the national capital, Union Minister of State for Science and Technology Jitendra Singh has said.
• Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla inaugurated the 'Suposhit Maa Abhiyan' in his constituency Kota's Ramganj Mandi area of Rajasthan. This initiative aims to keep every mother and child healthy.
• Odisha Government has launched India's first AI chatbot 'Ama KrushAI' for the agriculture sector at the concluding session of 'Krishi Odisha'-2023. Ama KrushAI chatbot will help farmers with best farming practices, and inform them about government schemes and loan products from over 40 commercial and cooperative banks.
• World Health Organisation will set up an mRNA (messenger ribonucleic acid) vaccine hub in Telangana. mRNA is becoming a promising technology to address a growing number of infectious diseases. Informed by Minister for IT and Industries KT Rama Rao.
• The “World Interfaith Harmony Week 2023”, an event recognised by the United Nations (UN), concluded at SCD Government College, Ludhiana on 16 February.
• The First G20 Environment and Climate Sustainability Working Group (ECSWG) meeting was held in Bengaluru, Karnataka under India’s G20 Presidency.
• The 6th Shanghai Cooperation Organisation Supreme Audit Institutes (SCO SAI) Leaders’ meeting was held in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh (UP).
• PM Narendra Modi launched a year-long commemoration of Maharishi Dayanand Saraswati’s 200th birth anniversary at the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium in Delhi.
• The 23rd edition of the India International Seafood Show (IISS) will be held in
• The Odisha govt approved in February 2023, a proposal to amend rules for single dependent transgender persons to avail of family pension.
• Prime Minister Modi inaugurated the National Aadi Mahotsav on 16th February 2023 at Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium, New Delhi.
• For the first time, an agreement was signed between the governments of Uttar Pradesh and Singapore for economic cooperation. Under the agreement, the governments of Singapore and Uttar Pradesh will cooperate in areas of mutual interest, including urban development, the sustainable development industry and skill development
• On the central government on 17 February declared Khalistan Tiger Force, and Jammu and Kashmir Ghaznavi Force as terrorist organisations under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).
• India's Income Tax Department has claimed it has uncovered irregularities in the accounting books of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC).

• Divya Kala Mela 2023 has been organised in Mumbai.
• Ministry of Textiles has organized the 10th ‘Technotex 2023: Envisioning Indian Technical Textiles@ 2047’ event, to be held from 22nd to 24th February 2023 in Mumbai, Maharashtra.
• The first Prime Minister Gati Shakti regional workshop for the Western and Central Zone was held in Goa.
• A noted writer, V Madhusoodanan Nair has been selected for Jnanappana Puraskaram 2023 for his contribution to the field of literature.
• India’s first Marine Spatial Planning (MSP) Framework was launched in Puducherry as a part of a pact under the Indo-Norway Integrated Ocean Initiative.
• On the occasion of International Mother Language Day (21st February 2023), West Bengal(WB) Chief Minister(CM) Mamata Banerjee launched the Apan Bangla (Own Bengal) portal for non-resident Bengalis residing in other Indian states and other countries to communicate with the WB government during an emergency.
• The International Khajuraho Dance Festival 2023 (49th edition) began on February 20, 2023, at the world-famous tourist destination of Khajuraho in Madhya Pradesh.
• Kerala Tourism, Government of Kerala has signed an MoU with the UN (United Nations) Women. To boost women-friendly activities in the tourism sector of Kerala.
• The Kerala High Court published two of its recent judgments in Malayalam on 21 February 2023. The 21 February is also observed as International Mother Language Day. With this, the Kerala High Court became the first high court in the country to publish judgments in the regional language.
• The National Institute of High-Security Animal Disease (ICAR), Bhopal has confirmed Avian Influenza (H5N1) in samples received from Government Poultry Farm in Bokaro, Jharkhand. The presence of the H5N1 variant was confirmed in a protein-rich breed of chicken known as 'Kadaknath' at a farm in Lohanchal.
• The National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) has given in-principle approval to the proposal to declare Debrigarh Wildlife Sanctuary as a Tiger Reserve following a notification by the Odisha state government. Debrigarh will become the third tiger reserve in the state and the first in western Odisha. Similipal and Satkosia are currently the only two notified TRs in the state.
• The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) is building the 'Keeladi Site Museum' at the Sangam Age site in the Sivagangai district of Tamil Nadu. More than 18,000 important artefacts discovered so far will be displayed in this museum.
• The 20th edition of Asia's largest biology and healthcare conference "BioAsia" was held in Hyderabad, Telangana. This year's theme is "Advancing for One: Shaping the Next Generation of Humanized Healthcare".
• The Kerala government has launched a robotic scavenger, "Bandicoot", to clean sewage in the temple town of Guruvayur, becoming the first state in the country to use robotic technology to clean all its operational manholes.
• India’s first to induct robotic elephant for ritual duties. The Irinjadappilly Sree Krishna Temple in Kerala‘s Thrissur district has become the first in the country to use a mechanical, lifelike elephant for temple rituals. The temple priests performed ‘Nadayiruthal’ or ceremonial offering to the deity, of Irinjadappilly Raman, a magnificent, lifelike mechanical or “robotic” elephant.
• Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on 26 Feb 2023, inaugurated North East India’s first-ever compressed biogas plant project at Sonapur in the Kamrup district of Assam.
  • The plant will have a production capacity of five tonne-per-day of compressed biogas that would be produced from raw materials such as cattle dung, municipal solid wastes, etc.

• The Karnataka Government will build the country's first Marina or a boat basin offering dockage, at Byndoor in Udupi district to promote coastal tourism in Karnataka.
• The Uttarakhand government has signed a contract to construct a 38 km ropeway from Janki Chatti in Kharsali to Yamunotri Dham. To be built at a cost of Rs 166.82 crore, the ropeway will cut down the travel time from the current 2-3 hours to just 20 minutes.
• A 'Grand Startup Conclave' was organized in Hyderabad by the Central Animal Husbandry and Dairy Department for current and emerging startups in livestock, dairy and animal husbandry areas.
• The Coconut Development Board in association with the International Coconut Community (ICC) organised a 2-day International Conference at Hyderabad, Telangana, on Trade and Marketing of Coconut Products with the participation of world stakeholders from February 27 to 28, 2023. The theme of the conference is “Global Coconut Industry - Cruising to the Pinnacle”.
• The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has found approx 1,300-year-old stupa in the middle of a mining site in Odisha’s Jajpur district from where Khondalite stones were excavated for the project around the Jagannath Temple in Puri.
  • Khondalite is a foliated metamorphic rock. In India, it is also called Bezwada Gneiss and Kailasa Gneiss. It was named after the Khond tribe of Odisha and Andhra Pradesh because well-formed examples of the rock were found in the inhabited hills of these regions of eastern India.
• As part of the G20 (Group of Twenty) Indian Presidency, the first G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors (FMCBG) and 2nd Finance and Central Bank Deputies (FCBD) Meeting was held in Bengaluru, Karnataka.
  • First G20 FMCBG Meeting was co-chaired by Union Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Ministry of Finance (MoF) and Dr Shaktikanta Das, Reserve Bank of India (RBI).
• Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) DrJitendra Singh, Ministry of Science and Technology inaugurated the “International Bio-resource Conclave” along with the 22^nd Congress of the International Society for Ethno-pharmacology and the 10^th Congress of Society for Ethno-pharmacology (ISE SFEC-2023) has been held from February 24-26, 2023 at the City Convention Centre, Imphal, Manipur with the theme “Reimagine Ethnopharmacology: Globalisation of Traditional Medicine''.
  • The events were organized by the Institute of Bio-resources and Sustainable Development (IBSD) in collaboration with Society for Ethno-pharmacology, India and the International Society for Ethno-Pharmacology, Switzerland.
• • Uttar Pradesh Government signed a 10-year Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) with Tata Technologies to Upgrade 150 ITIs across 75 districts in Uttar Pradesh.
  Ola Electric Mobility Private Limited has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Government of Tamil Nadu. The investments include setting up of world’s largest Electric Vehicle (EV) hub with an integrated two-wheeler, electric car and lithium-cell Gigafactories with a capacity of 20 GW in SIPCOT Bargur, Krishnagiri district of Tamil Nadu.

• Bihar Government approved USD 50,000 to develop an early warning system for dense fog and cold wave conditions in collaboration with the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR), a Federally Funded Research and Development Center of the National Science Foundation, United States of America.
• The Three Day- Ellora -Ajanta International Festival 2023 held in Chatrapati Sambhajinagar (formerly known as Aurangabad), Maharashtra, from 25th to 28th February 2023.

• China has started promoting rice bran as a staple food amid the food crisis in the country, as the food crisis remains a significant issue in China since 2020. China's National Rural Industry Development Plan (2020–2025) was formulated by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs in 2020 to encourage the full utilization of by-products such as rice bran and wheat bran.
• A US warplane shot down a Chinese high-altitude balloon over the Atlantic Ocean after it had crossed the entire US and caused a diplomatic rift between the two countries.
• The United States announced a new security package plan for Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative (USAI) funds up to $425 million, according to the statement released by US Defence Department.
• The United States reopened its embassy in the Solomon Islands, after 30- years, as part of a bid to counter China's growing influence in the South Pacific.
• Australia announced it will erase the British monarch from its banknotes, replacing the late Queen Elizabeth II’s image on its $5 note with a design honouring Indigenous culture.
• A meeting of the Quad Senior Cyber Group was held in New Delhi to strengthen cyber security cooperation. Quad or Quadrilateral Security Dialogue is a group of four countries US, Japan, Australia and India. The 2023 Quad Summit meeting be held in Australia.
• Myanmar's military-led government, working with Russia's state atomic energy company, has inaugurated a Nuclear Power Information Center as a step toward developing atomic power to fill energy shortages in the strife-torn Southeast Asian nation.
• The 1^st woman astronaut of Saudi Arabia will go to space this year, Saudi woman astronaut Rayyana Barnawi will join her fellow name Saudi Ali Al-Qarni on a 10-day mission to the International Space Station (ISS) this year. Barnawi and Al-Qarni will fly to the ISS aboard a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft as part of a mission by the private space company Axiom Space.
• The World Government Summit 2023 has held on 13th February 2023 in The World Government Summit will be held under the theme of “Shaping Future Governments”.
• US lawmakers have introduced a bill in the House of Representatives and the Senate that outlines US policy for open dialogue between China and the Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama.
  • The Bill calls for the independence of the Tibetan people and the peaceful resolution of their differences regarding Tibet.
• The three-day 12th World Hindi Conference has held in Fiji on February 15. The main theme of the conference is "Hindi - Traditional Knowledge of Artificial Intelligence'.
  • Every year 14 September is observed as Hindi Diwas in India.

• Peru reported the death of 585 sea lions and 55,000 wild birds due to the H5N1 bird flu virus in recent news.
• Quad countries India, Australia, America and Japan have recently launched Quad Cyber Challenge to strengthen cyber security. Its main objective is to strengthen the cyber security system in the Indo-Pacific region.
• Recently South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa declared a "state of disaster" due to the country's power crisis during his annual State of the Nation address in Cape Town.
• Australian govt. to remove Chinese-made cameras from its offices over spying concerns.
• According to the International Energy Agency (IEA) report Electricity Market Report 2023 released on February 2023
  • Asia will use half of the world’s electricity by 2025, a majority of which will be used in China.
  • Africa will only use 3% of the world’s electricity in 2025, despite having a fifth of the world’s population.

• The World Health Organization (WHO) confirmed the first-ever outbreak of Marburg disease in Equatorial Guinea in February 2023. Marburg virus disease is a highly virulent disease that causes haemorrhagic fever, with a fatality ratio of up to 88%. It is in the same family as the virus that causes Ebola virus disease.
• Spain's government on 16 February 2023 approved a law in parliament to give paid medical leave to women suffering from severe menstrual pain, becoming the first European country to push for such legislation. Thus menstrual leave is currently granted in only a few countries around the world such as Japan, Indonesia and Zambia.
• South Africa has participated in a combined military drill with Russia and China that some claim amounts to support for Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The 10-day naval exercises, which went on around the anniversary of the war in Ukraine, have drawn criticism from the US as well.

• The European Parliament has approved the law to ban the sale of new gas and diesel cars in the EU. The ban will come into effect in
• Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince unveiled The Mukaab, which is a 400-meter-high, wide, and long indoor supercity in the center of Riyadh. The Mukaab, the super city, will be large enough to hold 20 empire state buildings and it is aimed that the PIF-backed giga-project will become a new global icon of technology, sustainability, mobility, and Saudi Innovation.
• A team of experts from the National Geographic Society has installed the "world's highest weather station" on Mt. Everest at an altitude of 8,830 metres to automatically measure various meteorological phenomena.
• The 18th World Security Congress has been organised by the International Union of Railways (UIC) and Railway Protection Force (RPF) from 21 to 23 February in The 18th edition of this Congress is focused on the theme of "Railway Safety Strategy: Responses and Vision for the Future".
• According to the World Meteorological Department (WMO), the Global mean sea level rose by 5 millimeters (mm) per year during the period 2013-22. WMO stated that Human influence played a major role in the increases in sea levels since 1971
• In commemoration of India’s late Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat, a bell has been placed at Nepal’s revered Shree Muktinath Temple. The bell is named “Bipin Bell”.
• A national emergency was declared by the Minister for Emergency Management after Cyclone Gabrielle hit the North Island in New Zealand.
• The World Bank announced $2.5 billion in additional grant financing from the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) to support Ukraine's budget and maintain essential services.
• Global financial crime watchdog Financial Action Task Force (FATF) suspended Russia's membership. FATF is an inter-governmental organisation set up to combat money laundering and terrorism financing.
• Bhutan's Royal Highness The Gyalsey (Prince) Jigme Namgyel Wangchuck, became the country's first digital citizenby onboarding with the Bhutan National Digital Identity (NDI) mobile wallet.
• Seattle City became the first US city to ban caste discrimination and the first in the world to pass such a law outside South Asia.
• The 22nd World Sustainable Development Summit (WSDS) was held on 22-24 February 2023 in New Delhi. It is primarily the flagship annual event of The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI). Under the theme of “Mainstreaming Sustainable Development and Climate Resilience for Collective Action”.
• The International Solar Alliance (ISA) and Bangladesh have signed an agreement to enhance the use of solar energy in
• Inspection from the United Nations found uranium particles enriched up to 7% in Iran’s underground Fordo nuclear site. The confidential quarterly report by the Vienna-based International Atomic Energy Agency distributed to member states likely will raise tensions further between Iran and the West over its nuclear program.
• The inaugural I2U2 Business Forum was held in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (UAE).

• ‘Pay as You Drive’ (PAYD) policy has been launched by New India Assurance, which offers a comprehensive motor insurance policy that charges a premium based on the usage of the vehicle.
• IndusInd International Holdings Ltd. (IIHL), a subsidiary of the Hinduja Group, has received preliminary approval from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to increase its ownership in IndusInd Bank Ltd. (IndusInd Bank) to 26%. As a result, the Hinduja Group will contribute more than Rs. 10,000 crores to IndusInd Bank.
• The US has emerged as India's top destination for merchandise exports during April-December-2022 at USD 59.7 billion. The US was followed by UAE (USD 23.31 billion); Netherlands (USD 14.1 billion); China (USD 11 billion); Singapore and
• Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced that Permanent Account Number (PAN) will be used as a common identifier for all digital systems of specified government agencies. The move would help in further promoting ease of doing business in the country. PAN is a 10-digit alphanumeric number allotted by the income tax department to a person, firm or entity.
• HDFC Bank has partnered with NIIT Limited to build a large pool of skilled Virtual Relationship Management professionals for the banking industry. The program is designed to build in-demand and advanced sales skills among the learners which will enable them to acquire new customers for multiple services.
• The International Monetary Fund approved a total of USD 4.7 billion loan for Bangladesh, in which USD 1.4 billion under the Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF). Bangladesh is the first country in Asia to receive financing under the RSF.
  • The Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF) provides affordable long-term financing to countries undertaking reforms to reduce risks to prospective balance of payments stability, including those related to climate change and pandemic preparedness.

• Indore Municipal Corporation has launched secured redeemable Non-Convertible Debentures (NCDs) of the face value of Rs 1000 each, aggregating up to Rs 122 crore. The issue contains an option to retain over-subscription up to Rs 122 crores, making the total issue size Rs 244 crores.
• Kotak Mahindra Bank Limited has announced the implementation of the first phase of the Central Bank Digital Currency, referred to as the “Digital Rupee” (eRs.). The “Digital Rupee” (eRs.) is a legal tender equivalent to banknotes and coins but issued in a digital form by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). The RBI has shortlisted KMBL as one of eight banks to implement a pilot project for the issuance of e-currencies.
• Reliance Retail has become the first organized retail chain in India to accept the RBI-created and blockchain-based CBDC [eRs.] payments at its gourmet food store, Freshpik. All Reliance Retail outlets in India will gradually accept digital rupee payments.
• The International Monetary Fund has released its World Economic Outlook (WEO) report, which has updated its global growth forecast for the year 2023. Global growth, which was estimated at 3.4% in 2022, is now projected to accelerate to 1% in 2024, after declining to 2.9% in 2023. In the years 2023 and 2024, India will be the fastest-growing economy in the world. Growth in India will decline from 6.8% in 2022 to 6.1% in 2023, rising to 6.8% in 2024 with resilient domestic demand despite external challenges.
• The 3^rd dedicated branch for start-ups i.e. 'Special Startup Branch’ in the country has been set up by the State Bank of India (SBI) in Gurugram. The branch is the 3^rd  branch to be set up in India after Gurugram, Bengaluru and Mumbai which are valued at $100 billion or more.

• One97 Communications Limited, which owns financial services company Paytm, launched a G20 theme QR Code to celebrate India’s Presidency of the Inter-governmental forum and India’s leadership in mobile payments.
• Ujjivan Small Finance Bank launched ‘Hello Ujjivan’, India's 1^st mobile banking application with 3 V's - voice, visual, and vernacular-enabled features, to provide banking access to individuals who have limited reading and writing skills.
• Edelweiss General Insurance has rebranded itself as Zuno General Insurance Limited (Zuno GI), which is a new-age digital insurer with an aspiration to reimagine and redefine Insurance to make it easy, friendly, and transparent.
• ‘BizKhata’- which offers small businesses and business partners across the nation fast activation and limitless transactions launched by Airtel Payments Bank. Because they cannot maintain the minimum amount required for business accounts, many small business owners continue to use savings accounts for business-related expenses. This makes it difficult to distinguish between personal and corporate dealings.
• In response to the outcome of the monetary policy for the year 2023, the Central Bank Governor announced that the RBI will introduce a coin vending machine that uses a QR code to improve accessibility to coins. The pilot project is planned to be initially rolled out at 19 locations in 12 cities across the country.
  • These vending machines are intended to be installed at public places such as railway stations, shopping malls, marketplaces to enhance ease and accessibility.

• India’s leading fintech, MobiKwik has become the 1^st fintech app to support RuPay Credit Cards on UPI. The development brings a new level of convenience to the millions of Indians who use UPI for their daily transactions.
• The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved a $130 million (over Rs 1,072 crore) loan to enhance agricultural productivity and farmers' income in Himachal Pradesh and promote horticulture agribusiness.
  • Note ADB President:- Masatsugu Asakawa, Headquarters of ADB:- Manila, Philippines

• The RBI estimated India's FY24 economic growth rate at 6.4 per cent, lower than the Economic Survey's estimate of 6.5 per cent.
• PhonePe announced the launch of a service that will enable its Indian users to make payments to overseas businesses using the Unified Payments Interface (UPI). Walmart-backed finance app PhonePe claims to be the first app in India to do so.
  • "UPI International" enables retail locations in UAE, Singapore, Mauritius, Nepal and Bhutan with native QR (quick response) codes. Now PhonePe will provide a facility abroad under this facility.
• During the year 2021-22, India received foreign inward remittance of $89,127 million which was the highest-ever inward remittance received in a year.
  • Share of major countries in inward remittance (the year 2020-21) – United States - 23.4% United Arab Emirates- 18.0%, United Kingdom - 6.8%.
• SEBI has introduced the issue summary document for filing papers about IPO and for further issues of securities in XBRL(Xtensible Business Reporting Language) format, a move that will help provide data to stakeholders in a structured manner. This is part of the capital markets regulator's effort to make available relevant information at the stock exchanges and depositories in a structured manner.
  • XBRL is a language for the electronic communication of business and financial data which is used worldwide for business reporting. It is useful in the preparation, analysis and communication of business information.
• Indian Overseas Bank launched e-BG (Electronic Bank Guarantee i.e. BG in a digital mode) scheme in collaboration with the National E-Governance Services Limited (NeSL).
  • The e-BG is an instrument issued by the city-headquartered bank to eliminate the possibility of fraud and manipulation, in which, the bank undertakes to guarantee a specific amount against the non-fulfilment of some action/performance of the applicant.
• EbixCash World Money Limited, a subsidiary of US-based Ebix Inc, became the first company in India to launch the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) transactions for foreign nationals visiting India.
  • In January 2023, the NPCI approved UPI transactions for non-resident bank accounts such as Non-Resident External (NRE) and Non-Resident Ordinary (NRO) linked to international mobile numbers. In February 2023, under its Monetary policy, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) proposed to permit all inbound travellers to India to use UPI for their merchant payments while they are in India.
• HDFC Bank has launched a pilot project under the Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) regulatory Sandbox Program in partnership with 'Crunchfish Digital Cash' to test offline digital payments for merchants and customers.
  • The program is also known as 'OfflinePay' and will be rolled out in 16 cities as part of the pilot trial. Transactions will be limited to Rs 200 during the pilot phase of four months.

• The Reserve Bank has announced its second global hackathon - 'HaRBInger 2023 - Innovation for Change' with the theme 'Inclusive Digital Services'.
• ICICI Bank signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with a European bank, BNP Paribas, to meet the financial needs of European enterprises operating in India and Indian companies in the European Union (EU).
• Cashfree Payments, a leading payment and Application Programming Interface (API) banking solutions company have launched ‘Co-lend’, India’s 1st fully automated escrow management solution for co-lending. Co-lend was developed in line with the digital lending guidelines announced by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).
• It enables instant disbursal with automatic reconciliation and a dashboard for managing various partnerships, and other features. It requires no manual intervention, automatically notifies the loan management system, and eliminates reconciliation efforts.
• The union govt has announced to set up of a 'Bima Sugam portal' to address the existing protection gap across life, health, and general insurance businesses in the country.  It is expected to improve the accessibility and ease of purchasing insurance for policyholders.  The portal will provide a platform where insurers, distribution networks, and policyholders can meet virtually.
• RBI's 'Financial Literacy Week' is being organized from February 13-17, 2023. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has been organizing it every year since 2016 to disseminate financial education messages on a particular topic among members of the public across the country.
  • The theme for this year's Financial Literacy Week is "Good Financial Behavior – Your Saviour".

• Paytm Payments Bank - becomes first to launch UPI LITE feature. The UPI LITE feature will help with faster real-time transactions with a single click through Paytm as the bank aims to drive the adoption of digital payments across the country. 
• Karnataka Bank was awarded ‘Prathista Puraskar’ under ‘Digidhan Awards 2021-22’ by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), the government of India for achieving the target with the highest percentage in the BHIM-UPI transactions in the private sector bank category.
• According to Morgan Stanley, India’s gross domestic product (GDP) is expected to grow at2 per cent in FY24.
• The Asian Development Bank (ADB) to help India fulfil its most pressing development requirements, pledged up to $25 billion for the next five years to support social development, climate change, and infrastructure development in India under the PM Gati Shakti project.
• The Reserve Bank of India appointed Vikramaditya Singh Khichi to a panel to advise the administrator of debt-ridden Reliance Capital (RCap).
• Saraswat Bank has partnered with Singapore-based digital banking solutions provider Tagit to implement Omni channel digital banking solutions for its retail and corporate customers. Under the association, the bank will use Tagit’s Mobeix Digital Banking platform to enhance customer experience.
• The NSE (National Stock Exchange) has got the green light from the capital markets regulator to launch its Social Stock Exchange. The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) had given in-principle approval to National Stock Exchange (NSE) for setting up the exchange last December.
• Karnataka Bank and Paisalo Digital Ltd, a non-deposit-taking NBFC registered with the Reserve Bank of India, have entered into a co-lending arrangement to provide financial support to the small income segment and to give impetus to the micro and small enterprise segment of the country.
• Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC), an Indian state-owned insurance group and investment company, has diluted its shareholding in Industrial Investment Trust Limited (IITL) from 433% to 3.362%.
• India’s first-ever municipal bond index namely ‘Nifty India Municipal Bond Index’ has been launched by NSE Indices Limited, a subsidiary of the National Stock Exchange (NSE). It has a base date of January 1, 2021, and a base value of 1,000. It was launched at a Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) workshop on Municipal Debt Securities in Bengaluru, Karnataka.

• Dr Peggy Mohan won the 'Mathrubhumi Book of the Year' award during the fourth edition of the Mathrubhumi International Festival of Letters. He has been given this award for his book 'Wanderers, Kings and Merchants', which portrays the development of language as a result of migration.
• Grammy Awards 2023:
  • The 65^th Grammy Awards were hosted by Trevor Noah. Some important awards are as follows:

• Former Indian cricketer Monty Desai was appointed coach of the Nepal cricket team.
• The Higher Education Department appointed Squadron Leader Toolika Rani as the brand ambassador of G20. Squadron Leader Toolika Rani, a former Air Force officer, is the first woman to successfully scale Mount Everest from Uttar Pradesh. She is also the first Indian woman to hoist the tricolour on Mount Damavand, the highest volcano in Asia.
• Shamika Ravi has been appointed as a member of the Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister (EAC-PM).
• Prashant Agrawal has been appointed as the next Ambassador of India to the Lao People’s Democratic Republic.
• Manuela Roca Botey has became as Prime Minister of Equatorial Guinea. She became the first woman in the country to reach this position.
• Morgan Stanley has appointed Arun Kohli as the new India head in February 2023.
• Justice Sonia G Gokani took oath as Chief Justice of the Gujarat High Court becoming the state’s first female chief justice. She served as Chief Justice for nine days before retiring on February 25.
• President of India Droupadi Murmu appointed 13 new Governors while accepting the resignations of Bhagat Singh Koshyari as Governor of Maharashtra and of Radha Krishnan Mathur as Lt. Governor of Ladakh on 12 February.

• India's first Hydrogen Internal Combustion Engine (H2-ICE) truck was unveiled by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the 'India Energy Week' in Bengaluru. It is developed by Reliance Industries (RIL) in association with Ashok Leyland.
• According to the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), the ‘NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar (NISAR)’ will be launched from India in the first quarter of 2024, and operations will commence 90 days after it reaches the intended orbit.
  • NISAR is a Low-Earth Orbit (LEO) observatory being developed jointly by The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), United States (US) and ISRO, India.

• Mahanadi Coalfields Ltd (MCL), the premier CPSE under the Ministry of Coal has introduced drone technology in coal mines by launching a web-based portal VIHANGAM along with a drone and ground control system.
• The Indian Railways has started WhatsApp Communication ''Zoop' for railway passengers to order food through e-catering services to make e-catering services more customer-centric. Passengers will be able to order food online through WhatsApp while undertaking a journey by using their PNR number.
• An MoU was signed recently between ISRO and IIT Madras for collaboration on the application of Extended Reality (XR) and other technologies in the Indian Human Spaceflight Program.
  • Indian Institute of Technology Madras is going to develop a training module for Indian Spaceflight Program using Augmented Reality / Virtual Reality / Mixed Reality (AR / VR / MR).

• The government has revised the definition of broadband connectivity. The Government of India has specified a higher minimum download speed of 2 Mbps (megabits per second). Earlier, the definition notified by the Telecom Department in July 2013 had benchmarked it to 512 kbps (kilobits per second) as the minimum download speed.
• IBM has partnered with NASA to gain new findings on Earth’s climate through the power of AI technology. The two organizations will use AI tech developed by IBM together with the large amounts of Earth observation and geospatial data that NASA has available to share.
• SpaceX launched a batch of 53 internet satellites Starlink to orbit on its Falcon 9 rocket from Kennedy Space Center in Florida, United States of America(USA). This marks the 200th flight of SpaceX Falcon 9.
• 12 new moons have been discovered by the International Astronomical Union’s Minor Planet Center (MPC) around Jupiter, the largest planet in our Solar System. In this way, this planet has become the planet with the most satellites, currently, it has 92 satellites.
• 'Project ELLORA'- has been introduced by Microsoft, whose aim is to promote the use of local languages of India such as small languages like Gondi, Mundari in the digital world. Its full name is ELLORA: Enabling Low Resource Languages.
• Azad Engineering Private Limited, a Hyderabad-based market leader in engineering, has become the 1^st Indian company to supply critical rotating parts for nuclear turbines. The company has delivered its first set of critical parts. These will be assembled on nuclear turbines manufactured in Belfort, France. Azad Engineering has signed a long-term supply agreement with General Electric (GE) Steam Power for the supply of nuclear turbine parts.
• General Atomics, a major American energy and defence corporation, has started three significant projects in India in the field of artificial intelligence, drones and semiconductors, it is a landmark India-US initiative on critical and emerging technologies.
• The Science-20 (S-20) Inception Meeting was scheduled to take place in Puducherry. The meeting is Co-Chaired by Prof Ashutosh Sharma, President of the Indian National Science Academy.

• India’s first AC double-decker electric bus was Introduced in This air-conditioned double-decker electric bus is likely to ply on the routes in suburbs where conventional double-decker buses that run on diesel are currently operated.
• Scientists from Israel have developed a sniffing robot which is equipped with a biological sensor. The robot uses the antennae of a locust to diagnose disease and improve security checks.
• Italian researchers have discovered a Black Galaxy or Invisible Galaxy using Atacama Large Millimetre Array (ALMA). The galaxy is termed invisible because the light emitted couldn’t be seen from the Earth.
• A Tokamak Energy UK firm has announced a world-first set of “super” magnets, a new generation of high-temperature superconducting (HTS) magnets to be assembled that can be used for testing nuclear fusion power plants.
• Jeff Bezos-led Blue Origin did a big contract with the American space agency, NASA, to launch a mission to Mars. The private space company was given its first interplanetary NASA contract to launch the mission to study the magnetic field around the Red Planet. The expected launch date for the mission is 2024.
• Chinese search engine Baidu revealed its plans of launching a ChatGPT-style AI chatbot called ‘Ernie Bot’. Ernie, meaning “Enhanced Representation through Knowledge Integration,” is a large AI-powered language model introduced in 2019.
• Indian Institute of Science (IISc) has partnered with Samsung Semiconductor India Research to promote research and development in the field of on-chip Electrostatic Discharge (ESD) Protection. ESD is a sudden and momentary flow of electric current between two electrically charged objects.
• WhatsApp has been named India's most accessible app for persons with disabilities in a report titled "Making the Digital Ecosystem Disabled Friendly" released in February 2023. The report by the Vidhi Centre for Legal Policy evaluated the accessibility of ten of the most popular apps across various categories, including messaging, online payments, transport, e-commerce, and food delivery.
• Qualcomm Technologies has introduced the world’s first satellite-based two-way capable messaging solution for premium smartphones, called Snapdragon Satellite. The Snapdragon Satellite will offer global connectivity using mobile messaging from around the world, beginning with devices based on the flagship Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 Mobile Platform.
• Reliance Jio in partnership with GSMA has unveiled a nationwide Digital Skill initiative. The objective of this effort intends to provide rural women and people from low-income groups with training based on their specific needs.
  • During the trial phase, over 1,000 rural men and women from Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh participated.

• Union Minister for Road and Highways, Nitin Gadkariunveils World's Most Advanced Unmanned Air Traffic Management System – Skye UTM. Which can handle 4,000 flights per hour and 96,000 flights per day.
• Drone startup Garuda Aerospace has unveiled its solar-powered drone “SURAJ”, designed specifically for surveillance operations, at Aero India 2023.
  • SURAJ is an ISR (intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance) high-altitude drone designed specifically for surveillance operations, providing “real-time information to the high command and protecting jawans on the ground.”
• The Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) has launched an AI/ML (Artificial intelligence and machine learning)-based new Chatbot called “Aadhaar Mitra” to help people get answers to their queries related to the Aadhaar card.
  • The chatbot solves the queries like tracking Aadhaar Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC) status, registering and tracking grievances, and information on enrollment centre location.

• In Rajasthan, Science Center and Planetarium will be constructed in Kota. It will be one of the best science centres and planetariums in the world.
• Antaris announced that the world’s first satellite fully conceived, designed, and manufactured using the company’s end-to-end cloud platform, JANUS-1 has successfully reached orbit. JANUS-1 rode on the Indian Space Research Organization’s (ISRO) SSLV-D2 rocket.
  • JANUS-1 was launched from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre of India under a commercial arrangement with New Space India Limited (NSIL). The JANUS-1 satellite features five payloads from a range of global providers, which will be commissioned and begin nominal operations.

• Lexi, a ChatGPT-powered AI chatbot, has arrived in India. Velocity, a financial technology firm, launched the chatbot to assist e-commerce owners by presenting them with business information in a simplified manner. Lexi is India’s first AI assistant.
• Intel has launched the new Xeon W-3400 and Xeon W-2400 desktop workstation processors (code-named Sapphire Rapids), which are built for professional creators to provide massive performance for media and entertainment, engineering, and data science professionals.
• ALL India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) Rishikesh in Feb 2023, conducted a successful trial for transporting Tuberculosis (TB) medicines with the help of a drone to the district hospital in Tehri Garhwal in Uttarakhand.
  • Drone start-up company TechEagle's 'Vertiplane X3' drone model was used in the trial and delivered 3 kg of tuberculosis medicines to the hospital.

• The Minister for Communications, Electronics & Information Technology and Railways, Ashwini Vaishnaw inaugurated the ‘SemiconIndia Conference of Electronics Manufacturing Supply Chain Ecosystem’, on 18 February in New Delhi. The conference is being organised by the Institute of Supply Management.  The conference is being organised by the Institute of Supply Management (ISM).
• A joint venture between Indian conglomerate Vedanta and electronics giant Foxconn will set up a semiconductor and display manufacturing unit at the Dholera Special Investment Region (SIR) near Ahmedabad in Gujarat. This will be the first manufacturing facility for semiconductors in India.
• For the first time in India, for rail-based public transport, the first indigenously developed train control and supervision system 'i-ATS' was launched for operation on the Red Line of the Delhi Metro. India is the 6^th country to have its own ATS product. Earlier France, Germany, Japan, Canada and China have used this technique
• Serum Institute of India will be setting up Dr Cyrus Poonawalla Centre of Excellence (CoE) in Infectious Diseases and Pandemic Preparedness in the Indian Institute of Public Health,
• Meta (formally known as Facebook) has trained and will release a new large language model to researchers. The model, called LLaMA, is intended to help scientists and engineers explore applications for AI such as answering questions and summarizing documents.
• The Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) has developed a new variety of wheat which is 'HD-3385'.This new variety is suitable for early sowing. It can survive the wrath of heat and its crop can be harvested before the end of March.
• E-commerce giant Amazon announced that it will join the Indian government’s ONDC (Open Network for Digital Commerce) platform, and as part of its initial collaboration will integrate its Smart Commerce and logistics services with the ONDC network.
• India’s top oil firm Indian Oil Corporation Ltd. (IOC) will set up green hydrogen plants at all its refineries as it pivots a Rs 2-lakh crore green transition plan to achieve net-zero emissions from its operations by 2046.
• State Space Corporation ROSCOSMOS, the Russian Space Agency, launched an unmanned Soyuz MS-23 spacecraft to bring back 3 astronauts stranded on the International Space Station (ISS) due to the coolant leak on their original return capsule, Soyuz MS22 capsule. The unmanned Soyuz MS-23 was launched from Baikonur space centre in Kazakhstan and had been placed in Orbit.
• Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) has received the Indian Technical Standard Order (ITSO) authorisation from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) for its indigenously developed Cockpit Voice Recorder (CVR) and Flight Data Recorder (FDR), which is popularly known as “Black Boxes”.
• Species name “Horaglanis populi”, a new species of catfish with no eyes and blood red body. Discovered in Kerala

• Australia's T20 World Cup-winning captain Aaron Finch has announced his retirement from the T20 Internationals, this brings an end to his international cricket career for Australia spanning 12 years.
• Dipa Karmakar an Indian gymnast, has been banned for 21 months by the International Testing Agency (ITA) for failing a dope test. An Indian gymnast has been banned from the sport for consuming the banned substance i.e. Hygenamine.
• Indian Olympian Aditi Ashok won the 2023 Magical Kenya Ladies Open Title with a final-round score of 74. This is the fourth Ladies’ European championship of Aditi Ashok overall. Her first LET title comes after winning the Fatima Bint Mubarak Ladies Open in Abu Dhabi in 2017.
• Indo-Tibetan Border Police has won the National Ice Hockey Championship 2023 The Twelfth edition of the competition has been organized in Ladakh, Leh. The championship was organized by the Ice Hockey Association of India (IHAI).
• The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) announced that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia won the hosting of the 2027 Asian Nations Cup, for the first time in its history, since its inception in 1956.  This came during the work of the 33^rd Congress of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), on February 1, in the Bahraini capital, Manama.
  • Qatar will host the next edition of the Asian Football Cup, from June 26 to July 16, 2023.

• Indian tennis player Prajnesh Gunneswaran won the ITF Kuwait men’s Open Tennis tournament held in Kuwait.
• India has jumped to the third spot in the International Boxing Association’s (IBA) latest world rankings. Kazakhstan is the top-ranked nation followed by Uzbekistan.
• In the Zagreb Open 2023 which was held in Croatia, world champion Aman Sehrawat of India won a bronze medal in the men’s 57kg category.
• Sai Sanjay won the National champion in the MRF Formula 2000 class, Indian National Car Racing Championship in Feb 2023.
• Madhya Pradesh has made history by clinching all four gold medals in the water sports Canoeing and Kayaking at Khelo India Youth Games (KIYG) 2022, which was held at the Upper Lake area in the state capital Bhopal.
• Union Minister for Information and Broadcasting and Youth Affairs & Sports, Sh. Anurag Singh Thakur along with Lieutenant Governor, Jammu & Kashmir, Sh. Manoj Sinha launched the 3^rd Khelo India Winter Games Mascot, Theme Song and Jersey at Raj Bhavan, Jammu. The Winter Games are scheduled to be held from the 10th to the 14th of this month at Gulmarg, Jammu and Kashmir.
• Spanish football club Real Madrid has won the title of 'FIFA Club World Cup' for the fifth time in 9 years
• Maharashtra topped the medal tally of Khelo India Youth Games-2023 by winning a total of 161 medals, while Haryana and Madhya Pradesh came second and third.
  • The Khelo India Youth Games- 2023 event was organized at a total of 11 different locations across eight cities in Madhya Pradesh and New Delhi.

• LeBron James(an American professional basketball player) became the all-time leading scorer in the National Basketball Association, surpassing a record held by the great Kareem Abdul Jabbar since 1984.
• Ashwin took his 450^th Test wicket during the first Border-Gavaskar Trophy match between India and Australia at the Vidarbha Cricket Association Stadium in Nagpur. He has taken this wicket in his 89 Test matches.
• Indian captain Rohit Sharma has become the first Indian captain to score a century in all three formats of cricket.
• ICC T-20 Women’s World Cup has started in South Africa.
• Akshdeep Singh and Priyanka Goswami won the National Open Race Walking Championship 2023 in men's and women's 20 km race walk respectively, held on 14 February 2023 at Morabadi, Jharkhand.
• The 3rd edition of Khelo India Winter Games, KIWG 2023, a 1st of-a-kind multi-sport competition of India, was held in Gulmarg, Jammu and Kashmir(J&K) from 10th to 14th February 2023.  J&K topped the medal tally of KIWG 2023
  • Maharashtra came 2nd, followed by Himachal Pradesh.

• Deepti Sharma became the first Indian international player to take 100 wickets in T20 International cricket. Deepti achieved the feat during India's second group match against West Indies in the Women's T20 World Cup in Cape Town.
• England Test captain Ben Stokes on 18 February became the player to hit the most number of sixes in the history of Test cricket, surpassing England coach and former New Zealand cricketer Brendon McCullum in the match against New Zealand.
• Saurashtra won the Ranji Trophy 2022-23 title by defeating Bengal by 9 wickets in the final match played on February 19
• India's chess player Vignesh NR has become India's 80th Grandmaster after defeating Germany's IM Ilja Schneider and has won the 24th Nordwest Cup 2023 in Germany.
• Tilottama Sen won a bronze medal in the women's 10m Air Rifle at ISSF World Cup Cairo in
• Spanish player, Carlos Alcaraz won his first title since his milestone U.S. Open triumph by beating Cameron Norrie in straight sets at the Argentina Open tennis Tournament.
• Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports Anurag Singh Thakur inaugurated the 3-day All-India Taekwondo Championship in New Delhi. The championship is being organised to mark 50 years of Korea-India diplomatic relations.
• Spain legend Sergio Ramos on 23 February announced his retirement from international football.
• Australia has won the ICC Women's T20 World Cup trophy for the sixth time. Australia defeated South Africa by 19 runs in the final match played in Cape Town.
  • The 9^th  edition of the 2024 ICC Women's T20 World Cup is scheduled to be held in Bangladesh between September and October 2024 and in England in 2026.

• Madhya Pradesh was the winner of the 13th Hockey India Senior Women National Championship in 2023 after defeating Hockey Maharashtra.
• Daniil Medvedev won the Qatar Open in his professional tennis debut by defeating Andy Murray.
• New Zealand becomes the second team after West Indies won the Test match by one run. New Zealand team by defeating England by 1 run in the second Test.

• 'World Radio Day’ is celebrated across the globe on February 13 with the theme "Radio and Peace"
• The World Day of the Sick is observed on February 11th every year and is a day set aside by the Catholic Church to pray for those who are suffering from physical and mental illnesses. The theme for the 2023 World Day of the Sick is “Illness is part of our human condition”.
• National Deworming Day 2023: It is observed on 10 Februaryannually to spread awareness about the importance of deworming in all preschool and children of school age between 1 to 19 years.
• National Women's Day 2023 was celebrated on 13th February 2023 this year which marks the 144th birth anniversary of Smt.Sarojini Naidu. Thus, women's Day is an important celebration in the history of our nation. It empowers women and recognises their contribution to society.
• World Pulses Day was observed across the globe on 10 February. “Pulses for a Sustainable Future” is the theme for World Pulses Day 2023.
• World Unani Day is observed on 11^th The theme for World Unani Day 2023 is “Unani Medicine for Public Health”.
• International Childhood Cancer Day is annually observed across the globe on February 15. The theme of International Childhood Cancer Day 2023 is ‘Better Survival’ is achievable #throughtheirhands.
• 12th World Pangolin Day – 18th February 2022. it is annually observed across the world on the 3rd Saturday of February.
• World Day of Social Justice 2023 - February 20 Annually observed across the globe on February 20. The theme is “Overcoming Barriers and Unleashing Opportunities for Social Justice”.
• International Mother Language Day is annually observed across the globe on February 21. The theme of International Mother Language Day 2023 is “Multilingual education – a necessity to transform education”.
• World Thinking Day is annually observed across the globe on February 22. World Thinking Day 2023 is observed under the theme “Our World, Our Peaceful Future: The Environment, peace, and Security”.
• Central Excise Day is annually observed across India on February 24. The day also marks the anniversary of the enactment of the Central Excise and Salt Act on 24th February 1944. Central Excise and Salt Act of 1944 was the first law to impose excise duties on goods manufactured or produced in India.
• World NGO Day is annually observed across the globe on February 27. 27th February 2023 marks the observance of the 10th edition of World NGO Day.
• Fourth National Protein Day is annually observed across India on February 27. The theme of National Protein Day 2023 is “Easy Access to Protein for All”

• International Day of Zero Tolerance for Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) observe on 6 February. The theme of 2023 is “Partnership with Men and Boys to Transform Social and Gender Norms to End Female Genital Mutilation”.
• World Cancer Day 2023 observed on 4^th February “Close The Care Gap” has been the theme for World Cancer Day for the past three years (2022, 2023, and 2024).
• World Wetlands Day is observed across the world on 2 February. The theme of World Wetlands 2023 is "It's time for wetlands restoration". Wetlands Day marks the signing of a convention called the Ramsar Convention.
• Indian Columnist (Journalist) and author Palagummi Sainath has authored a new book titled “The Last Heroes Foot Soldiers of Indian Freedom” which broadly deals with the history of India’s freedom struggle written from the perspective of common people.
• British Indian author Salman Rushdie has published his new book 'Victory City'. The book is an 'epic tale' from the 14th century, based on the story of Pampa Campana, an orphan girl endowed with magical powers who challenges the whole world to rule a city.

• Kannada writer, V. Tirumalesh passed away in Hyderabad in February 2023.
• Legendary film director K. Vishwanath passed away in Hyderabad on February 2023.
• National Award-winning legendary playback singer VaniJairam from Tamil Nadu passed away.
• Italian Skier Elena Fanchini passed at the age of 37 after a toiling battle with cancer on 9th February 2023.
• Legendary Indian football player and two-time Olympian Tulsidas Balaram (Tulsidas Balaraman), an Arjuna Awardee, passed away in Kolkata, West Bengal, at the age of 87.
• Balipa Narayana Bhagawatha, a legendary Yakshagana playback singer, passed away on 16^th February 2023 in Moodbidri, Karnataka.
• Om Prakash Kohli (O P Kohli), former Governor of Gujarat (2014-2019) and Veteran Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader passed away in Noida, Uttar Pradesh (UP), at the age of 87.
• Dr Kanak Rele, a world-renowned dancer and Mohiniyattam exponent, Passed away. Mohiniattam is a classical dance form that originated in Kerala, India.